Lando Norris is dreaming of a first Grand Prix win in Japan after becoming the best of the rest – but admits McLaren are still ‘too far away’ to challenge Red Bull in Suzuka

Lando Norris gets used to being the best of the rest. Probably a little too much for his own taste.

Two weeks ago in Melbourne, the Brit became the unfortunate holder of a dubious honor, namely the driver with the most podium finishes without a single victory to his name.

Most are certain that he will one day triumph. If and when it does, that sip of champagne on the top step of the podium will taste a lot sweeter.

However, it seems unlikely that Norris will break that duck at Sunday morning’s Japanese Grand Prix.

At least not after Red Bull’s Max Verstappen and Sergio Perez looked to be in a class of their own around the exciting peaks and valleys of Suzuka during qualifying for Sunday’s race.

Norris starts third on the grid after predictably finishing behind both Red Bull drivers Sergio Perez and Max Verstappen

It seems unlikely that Norris will break that duck during Sunday morning’s Japanese Grand Prix

Verstappen, who was a good example between the Dutchman’s teeth after his early retirement in Australia, topped the time list in Japan, although his teammate was not far behind.

It looks like Perez is the man most likely to stand between Verstappen and victory here, as there’s no sign of those reliability issues rearing their ugly head again.

But from the second row of the grid after qualifying third, Norris has good reason to believe he can lead the challenge for the rest of the field and upset the Red Bull apple cart. This is a track where the McLaren driver has had success before claiming second place behind Verstappen last year.

“I would say yes,” said the 24-year-old when asked if Sunday was his best chance to force his way into the Red Bulls in recent memory. ‘It’s so difficult, Sergio is doing well. So there is a much more difficult car to keep track of.

“But last year, when we were further away from them, we proved that we could stay in touch and not fall miles behind. So that will be our goal.

“But realistically I think we are still too far away to challenge them, they are too fast for us. Yes, we are faster in qualifying. But in the race they normally pull away a bit more.

“Our competition is with the guys behind us and at the same time I will do my best to move forward.”

Norris was the best of the British today as Mercedes’ battle kicked off another weekend of racing.

In Melbourne, Norris became the driver with the most podium finishes without a single race victory to his name

Norris has good reason to believe he can lead the challenge for the rest of the field in Japan

Lewis Hamilton was in disbelief when he heard over the team radio how far he was behind pacesetter Verstappen during the final qualifying session. The seven-time world champion starts seventh, but qualified for the first time this season teammate George Russell, who was a disappointing ninth fastest.

Although it is clear that the Mercedes is not shining brightly in the fast corners of this brutally demanding circuit, Hamilton could take heart from the fact that for the first time in recent history he felt somewhat at home in his car.

“I think we’ve done a really good job in the last week, the analysis that everyone in the factory has done, just to try to understand how we can get the car to the right place,” said the 39-year-old, who comes to work at Ferrari. from next season.

‘It was much nicer to drive the car this weekend, especially on a circuit like this where you need a nice balance. This is the most beautiful thing I have felt in the last three years.’